Leopold: Part Three (5 page)

W
e bolt
the rest of the way to my house, Leo almost dragging me by my arm. As we reach the door, another van pulls up, then another and another.

My hands are trembling, and I can’t seem to make them work well enough to unlock the door. Leo pries the keyring from my fingers, turning the key in the lock before he pushes me inside.

He slams the door behind me, bolting it closed. He looks down at the keys in his hand for a moment before he slowly turns to me.

I snatch the keyring from him, shoving it into my bag. The silence between us is almost too much for me to bear, but I don’t know what to say to him. It’s not like I’ve had to deal with the media before, and I know whatever I ask him is going to sound pretty dumb.

After I set my purse down, I realize the bag with the boxes of condoms is still dangling from my arm and I set them down, too.

What the hell are we doing?

My cheeks burn at the sudden realization that the footsteps we heard might have been someone from the press. For all I know, they might have snapped pictures of us while we were…
My God. Did I really just have sex in public?

I don’t know what’s come over me. I have no idea why this is happening—
I don’t do this
. The new Elle—the one who picked up and moved seven thousand miles away to rebuild her life—
does not lose control of herself over a man
.

There’s no way this is going to end well. Even if I do allow myself to enjoy the moment—to let myself have a little fun—
I
am the one who will end up hurt. Leo doesn’t get hurt. He doesn’t let his “relationships” go on long enough to cause him any amount of grief.

He’s the exact opposite of me
. At least as far as emotional involvement goes.

I shouldn’t let this go any further, even if I have had the best sex of my life with him. That’s all this relationship is—sex. It’s not like it will ever be anything more than that—at least for him—and it’s best if we end it now. There’s no doubt it’s still going to hurt like a motherfucker when he leaves me again, but I’ll get over it. The longer he stays, the more difficult it’s going to be for me.

“Leo, I—”

“Well, now that we’re going to be here for the foreseeable future, aren’t you glad we bought the extra
supplies
?” He grins, lifting a brow suggestively.

“What…?” My eyes dart to the door, then the closed curtains, before my gaze turns back to his. “What exactly do you mean by
foreseeable future
?”

He shrugs, walking past me into the dining room. He turns back to look at me, extending a hand. “What does it matter? We’re here together. We have enough supplies for the next day or two—”

“Uh, hopefully, a lot more than a
day or two
. I think I mentioned how I might not be able to walk…” And it’s not like I’m not
already
sore from being with him more times than I can count.

“And I believe
I
mentioned how positively fantastic it would be to lie about in bed while you…recover.” He grins. “We could start now if you like. I don’t believe either of us is completely satisfied just yet.” He narrows his gaze a bit. “And trust me, Elle, I intend to leave you
completely
satisfied.”

His words ring in my ears for a moment before I realize what he’s actually said.

I intend to leave you
.

I’m not sure why I’m surprised he admitted it, or why I feel like I’ve been punched in the stomach at the realization. I stare at him, unblinking for a moment. “How long?”

He lifts a brow. “Hmm, I don’t know that I’ve ever timed myself, but I would guess at least—”

“I’m not asking about your world record for how long you last in bed, Leo. I’m asking how long
they’re
going to be out there.” I motion toward the door. “How long are you planning to
stay
?”

“Ah.” He glances over his shoulder at the door before he turns back to face me. “I couldn’t say how long they’ll be here. Perhaps only a few days, though it could be much longer. I was once trapped in a hotel in Rome for nearly two weeks, though I’ll admit I didn’t have nearly as pleasant a diversion as I have in you.”

My mouth falls open for a second—it’s a little hard to believe he just said what he did. “A…
diversion
? So you admit it? I’m a
diversion
?”

He shakes his head, taking a step toward me. “Of course not, Elle. I only meant that we don’t need to give the media any of our attention at all. We are
each other’s
diversions.” He closes the distance between us, placing his hands on my shoulders. His voice lowers to almost a whisper. “I can make you forget about everything else, Elle. Just as you’ll do the same for me.”

My jaw tightens for a moment, but my flash of anger is nothing compared to whatever it is that’s making my heart flutter in my chest.

But I shake my head, trying to clear whatever the hell it is that’s forcing me to lose all sense of control around him. “I can’t…I can’t stay here for two weeks. I need to try to find a job. And… And…”

He reaches up and places a hand on my cheek. “You’ll want for nothing while I’m here, Elle.”

While I’m here.

I take a step back and he drops his hand. “And I can’t have them…” I wave a hand toward the door. “I can’t have them digging around for stuff. I…I don’t want them to. I mean—”

“It’s a bit too late for that, though. Your name is the registered owner of this house and they’ve already tracked me here. I’m sure they already know your name.”

“But there has to be something you can do. Something
I
can do. What if… What if I just go out there and answer their questions? Do you think they’ll leave me—
us—
alone if I do?” It has to be worth a shot—maybe if I tell them what they want to hear, they won’t try to dig anything else up. Maybe they’ll leave me alone. Maybe they won’t find out about anything.

“Oh, Elle.” His brow furrows, almost as though he pities me. “If that tactic worked, there would be many fewer tragedies when it comes to the paparazzi. They never have enough information. You can tell them anything you like, but it is never enough for them. It will only feed their hunger—make them want more. Trust me—our best course of action is to remain here. To wait for them to lose interest.”

My breaths are coming way too fast, and I think I’m about to have a full-blown panic attack.
What if they find out? What if they blame me? What if…

Leo seems to sense my fear and he steps forward, taking me into his arms. He slides his arms around my waist and pulls me tightly to his chest, embracing me. Holding me.

Almost like he
cares.

He rests his cheek on the top of my head, holding me like that until I’m calm enough to pull away. He takes my hands in his. “Elle, I’ll do what I can. Not that my family’s reach extends to California, but I might have a few ideas about giving them something else to distract them. And if we’re lucky, a bigger story will tempt them away in the next few days. Perhaps the announcement of a divorce or a celebrity arrest—”

“I…can’t…” My breaths are still hitching in my chest, making it difficult to speak.

“I know you’re concerned about them finding out about what happened to you. But even if they do find out, it will be forgotten quickly. It is perhaps one of the
only
good things about celebrity news—the shelf life is quite short. This entire incident will likely be forgotten in only a matter of few weeks.”

It’s the
likely
part that worries me—if it was
definite
, it might not be as big a problem. And it isn’t so much the story about my boss—or my teacher—getting out that concerns me. There’s a much bigger issue at hand—one I never want the media
or
Leo finding out about.

I need to talk to Owen
.

Maybe a fling with Leo isn’t worth it, even if the sex is amazing. It’s probably best for both of us if we end it now—forget it ever happened, at least to the extent the media will
let
anyone forget. And I got what I wanted from him. I have enough fantasy material to last me the rest of my life. And I have a story to tell my grandchildren, should I ever have any.

“I think…” Tears fill my eyes, and I’m not sure where they come from. Or why they’re there at all. “I think maybe you should go.”

He tilts his head. “Elle, I know you don’t mean that. I… If I came on too strong before, I apologize. If I offended you by bringing up your past—”

“It isn’t that.” I glance over at the door before I look back up at him. “I just… I guess, if it’s going to end sooner or later, it might as well be sooner, you know? I mean, why drag it out?” I blink back the tears still in my eyes. “You have a reputation to protect or whatever. And I…”
I have things to hide. Even from you
.

He stares at me for what feels like an eternity. “What do I need to do to prove to you—?”

“Nothing.” I shake my head. “This isn’t about me not believing you. This is about me not wanting to drag you down. I know it’s scandalous for you to be here.”

He chuckles. “Elle, everything I’ve done in the past ten years has been something of a scandal. What this is…” He motions between the two of us. “I should be grateful to have a story reported about the two of us.”

My gaze narrows as I search his eyes. He must be lying—there’s no way he could actually have some sort of
pride
about what’s going on here. But I don’t see any hint of dishonesty in his gaze.

A slow smile spreads over his lips. “Why don’t you join me for a shower, Elle? I’ll prove to you how much I want to be here. And…” He reaches out and pulls a leaf from my hair, holding it out to me in his palm. “And I’ll be happy to help you wash away any evidence of what just happened in the park.”

I nod, staring down at the leaf before I look up into his eyes. “Why don’t you start without me? I have something I need to do…” I press my lips together, trying to figure out if I should tell him about the call I need to make. But I decide not to. “I promise I’ll come in and join you in a minute.”

He narrows his gaze for a moment. “You aren’t thinking of going out there, are you? Because I can assure you, Elle—”

“No.” I shake my head. “I promise I won’t go out there. And if I’m not naked in the shower with you in ten minutes, you can come out here and strip me yourself.”

“Well.” He grins. “I might like to do that, regardless.”

“Fine.” I force a smile. “In ten minutes.”

He gives me a slow nod as he backs himself toward the hallway. “Please don’t think of going out there, Elle. Please.”

“I promised I wouldn’t, Leo. And I always keep my promises.”

“Okay.” He nods several times, taking a few more backward steps into the hallway. “Very well. I trust you, Elle.”

My heart speeds in my chest again, but I try not to think about it. I only nod and watch him until he disappears into the bathroom.

As soon as I hear the shower turn on, I run back over to my purse and pull out my phone.

Dialing Owen’s number, I wait for him to answer.

And wait.

And wait.

His voicemail picks up after the tenth ring and I hang up, dialing the number again. This time, he answers after only the second ring.

“What?” He sounds half-asleep, even though there’s only a two-hour difference between our time zones—and it’s only early afternoon here.

“Owen. We need to talk.”

“Can’t. Busy.”

“Owen, it’s important. I have to—”

“Hang on.” There’s some shuffling and the click of a door. “Okay, what?”

“What are you doing? And why are you asleep? It’s only two o’clock—”

“Dude, I pulled an all-nighter last night. We got a new group of girls down here from Wisconsin. Let’s just say they’re very
eager
—”

“Ugh, no. Don’t want to hear it. And Owen, damn it, make sure you’re using protection…” I glance over at the grocery bag of condoms on the counter. “You don’t want to be a father right now, and I—”

“Whatever,
Mom
. Did you call me just to bust my balls? Because I’ve got things to do.
Girls
to do—”

“No. That’s not why I called.” I almost wince at the thought of him with
anyone
. I’m still not sure why the college-age women who go down there find him so attractive when he’s so… Well, there’s not a nice word for it. Unclean. Icky. Gross.

I sigh. “I have a little issue.”

“This has something to do with Prince Fancy Pants, right?”

“Right.” I pause for a moment, trying to decide what to tell him. “Thanks so much for giving him your key, by the way.”

“No problem. My gut says he’s a decent guy—and he seems to like you. I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t trust him.” He pauses. “Was that all?”

“No.” I wince again. “It’s…um… God, there’s no easy way to say this, Owen.”

“Just say it, then.”

“Right.” I let out a long breath. “There are vans outside the house. A lot of them.”

“So?”

“
News
vans. You know, the press? Leo thinks they’re probably going to dig up whatever they can about me.”

“Oh.” He’s silent for what seems like forever. “It’s why I can’t come back, you know?”

“Well, you
could
come back. It’s been over a year. No one’s—”

“Elle, Sis, seriously. Do whatever you want. I’m here. They’re
there
. And I’m pretty sure this country doesn’t do extradition, anyway.”

Owen knows the word
extradition
?

I shake my head—sometimes, I don’t give my brother enough credit. “But what if they find out? I mean—”

“They aren’t going to. If anyone was going to, they already would have. And even if they do, just deny you know anything about it. Because you don’t.”

“But I
do
. And that makes me at least partially responsible.”

He’s silent for another moment. “Well, like you said, it’s been a year. And seriously, Elle, no one gives two shits about that guy. And the world is a better place now. I tell myself that every single day.”

Something twists in my chest—I can’t believe my brother’s willingness to do the things he’s done. And I hate the guilt he so obviously feels about it—I know it’s why he numbs himself with weed and alcohol.